Reducing Allergens, Help Please

[rayne]

So Bubba and I had another trip to the vet, for his 6 month check up after having his most teeth removed ...my vet is now convinced he has environmental allergies after seeing some small patches he had licked the fur off of and a couple of scabs he has from scratching. When he gets itchy he seems to go nuts and pulls his fur out and licks until he has created a sore red, sometimes bloody spot. This has been going on for years, but we had assumed it was because of he got bit by a flea. The flea issues have been eradicated ( yay Cheristin ), however he continues to do the fur pulling and over grooming but not to the extent he has before.

The vet gave him a shot of Depo-Medrol for his itchies, and also did some blood work and a urinalysis as part of his senior cat check up.

Question is she mentioned Atopica, which might be the plan, but I'd like to try and eliminate some common cat allergens before i go down that road, any suggestions?

hugs and nose boops,
Rayne

 

[desktop]

Have you tried changing his food? His litter? I'm sure after all this time you probably have, but I'm just asking. My cat is also going through the same thing as your cat. I've tried all sorts of things and both my cats still shake their heads a lot and itch/chew themselves. I would be curious to hear more about the Atopica.

Another member of the forum mentioned that my cats could possibly have mites, because we live in a basement room. Going to make an appointment to have that checked out.

 

[cat princesses]

Well, it can be a very long process eliminating things. You can try getting Z/D from hills, it's wet food from your vet, it's expensive but it's a hydrolized food and you have to keep them on this for a good 3 months to see if it's possibly food related. I would highly recommend going to an animal dermatologist. They can run a blood test to screen for allergies and they can also take it a step further and do an inter dermal test where your cat would be put under and they shave an area and test for about 72 different allergens which gets you a more specific answer as far as anything environmental. Neither test will help if it's food related.
My cat was also extremely itchy to the point of making boo boo's on her legs - we did the blood test and found out she was allergic to dust mites and storage mites. We did steroids for about a month and also atopica - it takes about a month before the atopica fully kicks in. I am also using the atopica for dogs off label ( using for a cat instead ) because I find it much easier to pill my cat vs. using the nasty tasting liquid atopica for cats. So far it's made a significant difference in her itching - she barely licks anymore ( like crazy I'm itchy licking, not normal cleaning licking ). We're also going to take her for the inter dermal test - and then will have allergy injections mixed up to give her. I caution you the allergy shots are expensive but for us, if it provides her with relief, we're willing to commit long term to the treatment plan.